Thomas Dolby: I feared I'd 'screw up' Live Aid

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Photos:Live Aid: Where are they now?

Feed the world – Live Aid rocked the world via satellite on July 13, 1985. At least 70 acts performed for about 162,000 fans at stadiums in London and Philadelphia. The worldwide TV audience was estimated at around 1.5 billion. The event reportedly raised $245 million in response to widespread famine in Ethiopia. Click through the photos to see what some of the performers have been up to more than 30 years later:

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David Bowie – Seen performing in 2004, Bowie sang four solo songs at Live Aid. He died in 2016 at age 69 after losing a battle with cancer.

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Thomas Dolby – The musician who put together Bowie's backup band at Live Aid was already famous for his 1982 hit "She Blinded Me With Science." Today, Thomas Dolby is a professor at Baltimore's Johns Hopkins University, where he teaches classical musicians, composers and filmmakers.

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U2 – This iconic band's Live Aid show led to a memorable moment when frontman Bono jumped offstage to help a fan who was being crushed by the crowd at London's Wembley Stadium. In 2015, U2 launched a concert tour of North America and Europe, including this stop in Inglewood, California.

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Queen – Queen's performance was hailed as a highlight of Live Aid. Lead guitarist Brian May -- who now holds a doctorate in astrophysics -- is shown here in 2015. The band's current lead singer, Adam Lambert, stands in for the late Freddie Mercury who died in 1991.

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Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers – This band chose "American Girl" as the first song to be played at Live Aid's U.S. venue, JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. Tom Petty, right, here playing with longtime band mate Mike Campbell in 2014, launched a 40th anniversary tour in 2017.

Midge Ure – Scottish Live Aid co-founder and performer Midge Ure still tours internationally. Seen here in 2014, Ure recently told The Mirror about his battles with substance abuse before making a new life with his yoga-teacher wife and four daughters.

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Spandau Ballet – Steve Norman, Martin Kemp and Tony Hadley of Spandau Ballet -- performing in 2014 -- have recently played at music festivals. A feud over music rights sparked a rift that lasted many years before they reunited in 2009.

Nik Kershaw – Kershaw -- seen here in 2014 -- returned to performing in 1999 after years of focusing on writing and producing music. The singer, whose biggest hits included "Wouldn't It Be Good," told The Telegraph he wishes he'd enjoyed performing at Live Aid more, but he was too green and terrified at the time.

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Billy Ocean – Billy Ocean performed hits "Caribbean Queen" and "Loverboy" at Live Aid. These days, he's still taking the stage.

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The Hooters – Remember the Hooters? Maybe not. During Live Aid, the group played its hits "And We Danced" and "All You Zombies." The Hooters, including Eric Bazilian, left and Rob Hyman, seen here in 2003, reunited more than 10 years ago and continue to tour.

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Dire Straits – Frontman Mark Knopfler, left, sang to the Live Aid audience about how to get "money for nothing and chicks for free." Seen here, he performs in Paris in 2013.

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Sade – It's hard to follow Sade, seen here in 2011. The singer who performed "Your Love Is King" and other songs at Live Aid openly admits she "avoids celebrity." She told Reuters in 2012, "I don't consider myself a celebrity, I consider myself a songwriter and a singer -- a person who makes music."

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Howard Jones – Howard Jones still tours and includes interactive multimedia elements in his performances. When he's not touring, Jones lives in Somerset, England. Here he performs in London in 2013.

Madonna – Madonna was still relatively new to fame at Live Aid. She quipped onstage about nude photos of herself that had surfaced in Playboy. Now in her late 50s, the singer still commands attention.

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Ashford & Simpson – For a while there was no stopping this husband-and-wife, singing-songwriting team, whose hits were often "Solid (as a Rock)." Nickolas Ashford and Valerie Simpson performed that mega-hit at Live Aid. Twenty-four years later, they sang it at inauguration festivities for U.S. President Barack Obama -- changing the lyrics to "Solid (as Barack)." In 2011, Ashford died at age 70 after battling throat cancer. Simpson continues to perform and recorded an album in 2012.

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Bob Dylan – It was at Live Aid where Bob Dylan -- shown here in 2012 -- sparked the notion of Farm Aid, suggesting that performers raise money to save failing family farms in the United States. That same year, Dylan appeared at the first Farm Aid. In 1988, he co-founded the hit-making Traveling Wilburys with some of the biggest names in music. The prolific singer-songwriter continues to record and perform. In 2016, Dylan won the Nobel Prize for literature.

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The Cars – The Cars' "Drive" provided the music for a heartbreaking video showing famine victims that was played during the Live Aid concert. Three years later, the band broke up. Vocalist and guitarist Ric Ocasek -- shown here in 2011 -- continues to produce recordings for other bands. In 2000, Cars singer/bassist Benjamin Orr lost a fight with cancer at age 53. The remaining members reunited and released an album in 2011.

Bryan Adams – During Live Aid, Bryan Adams' music was in heavy rotation on U.S. radio stations following release of his 1984 hit album, "Reckless." He played some of those songs at Live Aid, and a few years later went on to win a Grammy and an MTV Video Music Award. Adams toured to celebrate "Reckless'" 30th anniversary. Here he performs in Germany in 2014.

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Rick Springfield – Rick Springfield did not perform his big hit "Jessie's Girl" at Live Aid. Instead, the actor/rock star chose to play more current hits, including "Human Touch." Springfield, now in his late 60s, continues to write, record and perform. In the mid-2000s, he returned briefly to the daytime TV drama that first made him famous, "General Hospital." More recently, Springfield appeared in the 2015 HBO series "True Detective."

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Mick Jagger – The Rolling Stones frontman had just released his first solo album, "She's the Boss," at the time of Live Aid. He sang a song from that album and also performed a sexy duet with Tina Turner. Jagger, now in his 70s, continues to record and tour, including here in Pittsburgh in 2015. He co-produced a 2014 Hollywood film about the life of singer James Brown called "Get on Up."

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Tina Turner – Jagger's Live Aid duets with Tina Turner -- "State of Shock" and "It's Only Rock 'n' Roll" -- raised some eyebrows when he went shirtless and then pulled her leather skirt away to reveal a sexy leotard underneath. Turner's career was on a roll -- she had released her comeback album, "Private Dancer," a year earlier and she was starring in the film "Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome." Now in her late 70s, Turner is a Kennedy Center honoree and a Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee.

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REO Speedwagon – Most members of REO Speedwagon who played at Live Aid are still with the band more than 30 years later: singer Kevin Cronin, at the mic; keyboardist Neal Doughty, hidden; bassist Bruce Hall, second from left; and drummer Alan Gratzer. Not shown here is Gary Richrath -- the REO Speedwagon guitarist who wrote some of the band's biggest hits, including "Take It on the Run" and "In Your Letter." Richrath died in 2016 at age 65.

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Phil Collins – Genesis singer Phil Collins generated buzz by performing at Live Aid in the UK and U.S. on the same day -- thanks to a trans-Atlantic flight on a supersonic Concorde airliner. Collins' hits have tapered off since the 1990s. In 2015, the singer reportedly bought a $33 million Miami mansion that once belonged to Jennifer Lopez. Here he performs at the Prince's Trust Rock Gala in London in 2010.

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Hall & Oates – Not only did singer/guitarist Daryl Hall, left, and singer/guitarist John Oates perform at Live Aid, they also backed up R&B legends Eddie Kendricks and David Ruffin. Hall & Oates were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. Recently Hall hosted a popular cable TV series, "Live From Daryl's House," that featured him jamming with guest musicians. Hall & Oates are seen here performing in 2014 at Henham Park in Southwold, England.

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Duran Duran – In the years after Live Aid, Duran Duran scored major hits, including 1986's "Notorious," 1993's "Ordinary World" and 2004's "Sunrise." The band has toured for years, including this 2015 appearance at the Sonar Music Festival in Barcelona, Spain.

Bob Geldof – The success of Live Aid led to co-founder Bob Geldof receiving an honorary knighthood in 1986. He has continued his activism while investing time and money in TV production businesses. Geldof, now in his 60s, is shown here in 2014 urging Scots not to break away from the British government.

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Story highlights

On Live Aid's 30th anniversary, Thomas Dolby reveals behind-the-scenes moments with David Bowie

About 70 acts performed, raising a reported $245 million for Ethiopian famine relief

Around 162,000 fans attended in two countries, and an estimated 1.5 billion watched on TV

(CNN)Thirty years ago at Live Aid, Thomas Dolby felt convinced he would "screw up the gig."

Hey, no pressure. He was only backing up David Bowie in front of a worldwide audience.

For those who don't remember, the July 13, 1985, concert amounted to a global response to an Ethiopian famine that had killed tens of thousands of people. It followed recordings intended to raise awareness of the crisis, including Band Aid's "Do They Know It's Christmas" and USA for Africa's "We Are the World."

That July day, at least 70 acts performed for 16 hours straight at London's Wembley Stadium and at JFK Stadium in Philadelphia. When the last notes faded, the event reportedly raised an eye-popping $245 million, according to MTV.

Dolby -- already famous for his hit "She Blinded Me With Science" -- had been asked to form a band quickly as backup for Bowie at Wembley. But as the concert date drew near, preparations were a bit rough around the edges.

The band had only rehearsed five or six times. Also, it had never practiced the full set -- all four songs -- back-to-back.

When Bowie took the stage to a roaring crowd of 72,000 -- and about 1.5 billion watching via satellite -- Dolby was at the keyboards. He remembers kicking off "TVC15" in a "piano vamp style that's not really my thing." Nonetheless, things appeared to go smoothly.

Dressed in a suit and tie, Bowie owned the stage, dancing arm in arm with a backup singer and then seamlessly moving into "Rebel Rebel" and "Modern Love."

"The song I was worried most about was 'Heroes,' " Dolby said. Bowie had chosen his classic singalong anthem as a fitting end to his performance. It was one of Dolby's favorites, which made the pressure even more intense.

The song I was worried most about was "Heroes."

Live Aid musician Thomas Dolby

When the time came to play the first notes of the song, "I just basically went into automatic pilot and just stared past Bowie's back toward the hordes of screaming fans," Dolby recalled.

"A song like that, when it's completely in your consciousness, you don't really have to think about it, you just have to be in the moment."

The song just played itself, he said. "My fingers did the walking."

Speaking over the music, Bowie thanked the band for getting together "so quickly to do this show for me. I'll be forever in your debt."

The fact that Bowie was "willing to take a chance with a young band with very little rehearsal was a ballsy move on his part," Dolby said. "I was just very proud that it was us."

For much of the next three decades, Dolby focused on writing, performing and recording music, including video game and film scores.

Now, at 56, the guy who became famous with a song about a professor who was "blinded with science" has become a professor himself.

Pretty impressive for a guy who left school at 16 to work in a fruit and vegetable shop and never attended university. And not bad for a musician who says he doesn't "really read or write music."

"I hope my approach will sort of rub off on them," Dolby said.

Live Aid: July 13, 1985

London attendance: 72,000

Philadelphia attendance: 90,000

TV viewers: 1.5 billion (estimated) in 100 nations

Number of acts/artists: About 70

Concert length: 16 hours

Money raised: $245 million

Source: MTV

Dolby credits much of his career path to an innate curiosity that has always driven him toward "cutting-edge technologies that people haven't really figured out yet," he said.

Experimenting with digital do-it-yourself music production gave him the confidence to move on to DIY filmmaking. In 2013 he directed, shot and edited a documentary called "The Invisible Lighthouse."

"That's the kind of confidence that I try to instill in my students at the university."

This summer Dolby is back home in England writing a memoir to be published next year, which includes his Live Aid stories. The anniversary attention is prompting him to reflect on the concert's place in music history.

"I wasn't at Woodstock, but if I heard somebody say that it was just another '60s rock festival, then I would point out there was nothing run-of-the-mill about it," he said. "It meant an awful lot to a lot of people who would disagree. And I think that would be true of Live Aid as well."